Most of gaming greatest titles have one thing in common - a fantastic musical score. But with so many classic melodies and signature tracks it can be hard for fans to pin down just which game has the best overall soundtrack.

Recently, I learned a well-kept secret about Mine Cart Carnage, the eighth level of Donkey Kong Country for the SNES. My childhood memories of playing this particular level are all negative, nothing but frustration and endless, wasted hours. When I found out what the secret was, I wanted to kick myself. It would have…

Before Donkey Kong Country was the game we all know, it was Donkey Kong and the Golden Bananas. Long time Rare designer Gregg Mayles has been tweeting out all sorts of art and concepts from the early stages of the SNES hit, which Rare developed in the early ‘90s.

In November of 2012, Nintendo pulled the Donkey Kong Country trilogy from the Wii's Virtual Console. They gave no explanation, as is the Nintendo Way. And today, nearly two and a half years later, Nintendo announced that all three games are coming back, this time for the Wii U.

There's putting form over function, and then there's making a themed Game Boy case that's so ornate I'm not sure it's playable. This Donkey Kong-themed skin is one of the best custom console jobs I've seen. But it also raises important questions like: do those directional buttons actually work?

Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is the newest game in the long running series and the first on the Wii U. It has all the platforming you could want as well as returning characters Dixie Kong and Cranky Kong. Check out the video to see the game in action.

This past weekend, I sat down and powered through the newest Donkey Kong title Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze. And as I explored all the game has to offer, I found myself nearly giddy at Cranky Kong’s special ability: to bounce along on his cane like Scrooge McDuck in the NES classic DuckTales.

What appears to be a charming little visual Easter egg in Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is actually so much more. Yes, DK whips out a 3DS and plays it when you leave him idle (he's done this in the past.) But he's actually playing Animal Crossing: New Leaf, Mario Kart 7 and even, well, Donkey Kong Country…

Water levels can be pain in the ass, especially when unnecessarily complex gameplay mechanics meet blurry, monotonous graphics. But that's not always the case. Truth is, there are water levels (or places where water plays a key role) that look really refreshing, relaxing, and that might even possess a special, eerie…

There was a time when mines and minecarts dominated video games. If a platformer or RPG didn't have a mine stage or a mine-themed dungeon, it wasn't a game. We felt like mines—where actual mining was eschewed in favor of racing around on minecarts—were the most natural things in the world, just as common as forests.

With Temple Run 2 whipping endless runner fans into a inevitably doomed frenzy, FDG Entertainment gets ready to release Banana Kong, game that's just a Nintendo license away from being a Donkey Kong Country spin-off.